The Bulletproof Musician

My daughter and I have been binge-watching past seasons of The Amazing Race for some months now, and the psychology nerd in me has become increasingly fascinated by one particular aspect of the show.

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Ever get that overwhelmed feeling in the practice room? Where you know there’s a ton of work to be done, but you’re not quite sure where to start or what exactly to do?

Maybe you’re not happy with you…

Even from a young age, I was always confused by the relationship between nerves and performance. There were times, for instance, when I’d be nervous and sound pretty terrible. But then there were oth…

Somewhere along the line we learn that mistakes are bad, and perfect is good - but what if this is actually not true when it comes to learning?

What if mistakes are actually an essential part of learn…

When you're practicing sight-reading, how difficult should the music be?

Should it be easy enough that you can read it more or less perfectly, without any mistakes?

Should it be difficult enough that y…

Have you ever found yourself getting irritated or see your performance get derailed by distractions on stage? Maybe it was noises backstage, or movement in the audience, or people coughing and loudly…

A one-hour lesson can often go by really quickly, but also be packed with lots and lots to remember.

Have you ever found yourself repeating yourself from one week to the next? Having to remind student…

It's human nature to want to be liked and accepted by others. But while some seem to have a knack for it, for many of us, fear of rejection or fear of negative evaluation can get in the way.

Whether i…

Have you ever had one of those "aha" moments when a solution to a problem spontaneously popped into your head?

Wouldn't it be nice if we could have those moments more often? 

Well, a 2012 study suggest…

Ever notice how some folks seem to learn faster than others? What’s their secret? Is it just natural ability? Sure, maybe there’s some of that.

But could it also be that they’re doing something differ…

Ever notice how mean the voice in your head can become on stage? Where it generates YouTube comment section-like levels of criticism and abuse?

Or maybe you haven’t even gotten on stage yet. But as yo…

I came across a study years ago which found that fear of negative evaluation was one of the key drivers of performance anxiety in musicians. Which of course makes perfect sense, as we're being evalua…

Have you ever had one of those days on stage where you suddenly can't seem to do a thing that normally is never an issue?

Or maybe it's one of those days where everything just spontaneously falls apa…

Taking breaks in the middle of practice or study sessions can be a pain. Often, it's a lot easier and more convenient to just power through and get it over with.

But what price do we pay by not spacin…

Ever had one of those “I’m a total failure, and I’m never going to be invited to play with these folks again” moments?

In this month’s chat, pianist Orli Shaham shares a deeply personal story about a …

Maybe you've set some goals for the coming year, but you're not quite sure where to start, and feeling a little overwhelmed? Or maybe you have a history of setting goals but not following through?

A 2…

Are you a little overwhelmed by all of the different year-in-review and goal-setting methods you're getting in your inbox?

If you're confused by the variety and range of approaches out there and just…

Have you ever wondered if there's an advantage to being an extrovert or introvert when it comes to performing?

Well, I'm afraid you're going to have to keep wondering, because I couldn't find a defini…

“See one, do one, teach one” is a model for learning that’s been utilized in medicine for many generations.

It’s quite a helpful model, but if you’ve ever tried your hand at teaching, you know how inc…

Have you ever wondered how much the visual aspect of a performance matters to the listener?

Like, if you were going to enter two competitions, where one required submitting an audio recording and the …